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Obama awards Medals of Honor to 24 ethnic or minority U.S. soldiers

By Jim KuhnhennThe Associated Press

Posted:
03/19/2014 12:01:00 AM MDT

Updated:
03/19/2014 02:07:46 AM MDT

WASHINGTON — On Tuesday, 24 ethnic or minority U.S. soldiers who performed bravely under fire in three of the nation's wars finally received the Medal of Honor that the government concluded should have been awarded a long time ago. The servicemen — Latinos, Jews and African-Americans — were identified after a congressionally mandated review to ensure that eligible recipients of the country's highest recognition for valor were not bypassed because of prejudice. Only three of the 24 were alive for President Barack Obama to drape the medals around their necks.

Melvin Morris

From left, Army Staff Sgt. (Ret.) Melvin Morris, Army Sgt. First Class (Ret.) Jose Rodela and Army Spec. 4 (Ret.) Santiago Erevia are presented to those in attendance after having received the Medal of Honor on Tuesday. (Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images)

Morris of Cocoa, Fla., was a staff sergeant during combat operations on Sept. 17, 1969, near Chi Lang, South Vietnam. According to the Pentagon, Morris led soldiers across enemy lines to retrieve his team sergeant, who had been killed. He single-handedly destroyed an enemy force hidden in bunkers that had pinned down his battalion. Morris was shot three times as he ran with American casualties.

"I never really did worry about decorations," Morris told The Associated Press last month. But he said he fell to his knees when he received the surprise call from Obama with news that he was to be honored.

Jose Rodela

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Rodela, now of San Antonio, was a 31-year-old company commander of a Special Forces strike group on Sept. 1, 1969, in Phuoc Long Province, Vietnam, when he and his company of Cambodian soldiers came under fire.

According to his Medal of Honor citation and supporting documents, the battle lasted 18 hours, and 11 men in his company were killed and 33 others wounded.

The citation states that late in the battle, Rodela "was the only member of his company who was moving and he began to run from one position to the next, checking for casualties and moving survivors into different positions in an attempt to form a stable defense line."

Santiago Erevia

Erevia, also of San Antonio, was cited for courage while serving as a radio-telephone operator on May 21, 1969, during a search-and-clear mission near Tam Ky, South Vietnam. He was a specialist 4 when his battalion tried to take a hill fortified by Viet Cong and North Vietnam Army soldiers. The Pentagon says he single-handedly silenced four Viet Cong bunkers. As for the medal, he told the publication Soldier Live last month, "I'm only thankful I'm getting it while I'm alive."

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